Soder - 149: Ring Pop with Chris Lamberth | Soder Podcast | BONUS

Episode Date: August 21, 2026

Soder is building a new hour on the road!Get tickets at https://www.dansoder.com/tourAugust 20-22 Spokane,WASeptember 10-12 Portland,MESeptember 17-19 Hartford,CTOctober 2-3 Alburquerque,NMOctober 4-7 Fort Collins,COOctober 19-21 Winnipeg, CanadaOctober 22-24 Calgary,CanadaNovember 5-7 Salt Lake City,UTDecember 10-12 Rochester,NYFollow Chris Lamberth and watch his "Killing In Obscurity"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtg9c6H6_8whttps://www.instagram.com/chrislamberth/?hl=enhttps://x.com/ChrisLamberth?lang=enhttps://www.youtube.com/@ChrisLamberthComedyPLEASE Drop us a rating on iTunes and subscribe to the show to help us grow.https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/soder/id1716617572Connect with SoderTwitter: https://Twitter.com/dansoderInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/dansoderTiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dansodercomedyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/dansoderYoutube: http://www.youtube.com/@dansoder.comedy#dansoder #standup #comedy #entertainment #podcastProduced by  Mike Lavin     https://www.instagram.com/thehomelesspimp/?hl=en

I am on the road building this new hour this weekend. I am in Spokane, Washington at Spokane Comedy Club. I'm in Portland, Maine, September 10th through the 12th at Empire Comedy Club. The early shows are sold out, but we still have late shows with tickets available. Those are at DanSenter.com. And then if you're in Hartford, Connecticut, my birthplace. I will be there Thursday, September 17th, Friday, September 18th, and Saturday, September 19th. Dancerr.com.

There are going to be a lot of fun shows. Also just go to my website. All the dates are there through the end of the year. And check out punchup. Live. Got movie watchalongs. You can also sign up for my mailing list. So when I come to your city, you already know.

And these little intros don't mean jack squat. Do you still hate Dan Snyder? As a commander's fan? Yeah, because based on everything that's been going on with how galvanized this city is, the whole area, or as we say in Maryland, the Uria. Uria. Bulmore Merlin.

Yeah. That mid, what is that? That mid-Atlantic? Mid-Atlantic. Yeah, you guys were similar to a Philly. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's a little like from where like Stavros is from. Yeah. Like an hour away. Okay. I'm an hour south of where he grew up.

So you clear the cloud? Yeah, but it's a little, like I've kind of lost it a little bit, but it's like the the vowel sounds like instead of party, we would say party. Yeah. About to go to the party at Dan's house. People losing their accents to me is crazy. Because I grew up in Colorado where everyone's like,

hello, how are you doing? Yeah. And then I see people, Katie is from Framingham, Massachusetts. Yeah. And she does not have a Massachusetts accent. And then I saw an old video of her in her 20s, and she has an accident. Absolutely has a Massachusetts accent.

Sounded like Amy Puller in one of those. She's like, I'm going to go down. I'm at the end. of the bar having a drink and you're like Jesus so it's crazy to me that you like train your mouth not to you know yeah it's and then with

to her in her defense like she's a broadcaster and then I was I'm a theater guy yeah and there's a where you're from is kind of they would call that standard American dialect broadcaster accent yeah stage standard and and then if there's the little like

when 40 winters have the siege I'm proud. You're doing. New time air. Yeah, so it's a little different. As a theater guy, when Timothy Shalamey talks all that shit about, it was, but what was it about, the ballet? Ballet and opera.

And opera. But that's like, those are your siblings. He kind of fucked up. His mom, his mom, he's from that. His mom is a ballet dancer. I think his sister was in. Oh, really? Yeah.

So it was kind of weird that he said that, but like. So he's just trying to get into a fight with his family. Maybe. And he ended up catching fucking everyone else by surprise. Because they were saying McConae was like, no, no, don't do it. He was trying to stop him. Oh, yeah, he's like, hi, buddy. No, I don't think you should go down there.

He's like, I'll say fuck the ballet. What are they going to do? Kick me in the head? Yeah, it's one of those things. Like, I'm taking my girlfriend to the ballet in a couple of weeks. Yeah. Down in, listen, NJ PACs for a birthday. It's a great date activity.

Yeah. If you can get, theater is something you appreciate when you get older. Or for young kids, if you're, a theater kid. I was a theater nerd. I mean, like, I love stand-up. Sure. And like when I was a kid, you know, and Martin Lawrence was a god to me because he's from PG County. Oh yeah. Where I'm from. And like he- Damn, so you had one of the guys. Yeah. From your neighborhood. So it was like, I mean, he was much older than me. Sure. You know, but like I remember my late great dad taking me to see talk to see you so crazy in 94. So I would have been like 13, 14.

taking me to that, his album talking shit, listening to it all the time driving around, Paul Mooney, Deaf Comedy Jam, watching that like cartoons. You know, like so that was, I completely, yeah, I think a problem with the internet is that boys at 13 or 14 now are seeing Manosphere guys. Yeah.

Who, when you're older, you realize they're just either broken or insecure. They're never like happy. Yeah. They're not like, you know what I do? I go home and I enjoy myself. They're like every moment I'm making wealth. Every moment I'm making sure that I take something fundamental and I turn it into gold and go, brother, relax.

Yeah. When I was a kid, my first off the book's job was cutting grass. Like I cut grass. My dad would edge up the lawn. Now you take that money and you put it into a, yeah. Baseball and football cards. Like all that all that But basically my point was that

At 13 or 14 It was great that our Manosphere was stand-up comedians Because it was funny And they were like smart So you're like like the way that What breaks my heart Is the way that young guys right now

Are influenced by dipshits They don't have like good comedy They don't well they have like That's why I love seeing Shane have like My little cousin was like Do you know Shane Gillis? And you're like yeah buddy Yeah

Because you're like you feed that Tell your friends to go watch stand-up. Watch something funny. It's a weird thing because it's not weird, but it's interesting because I think back to being such a fan of Martin Lawrence and seeing that he was like a rock star, but then he also had that vulnerability where he would say, oh, I fucked up here,

where that bit that he had crazy deranged and you so crazy, where he's like, oh, I'm kind of flawed, I'm not perfect, and I'm this way. I'm, you know, vulnerability. Well, also there was this ownership of kind of his actions, even in the sentence where he's like, it's my life, I'm going to talk about the way I see it. And you're like, that is such a good thesis statement

for Martin Lawrence where he's just like, this is how I experience it and I'm realizing I'm wrong. Yeah. What's interesting is there was like a lot of accountability in that kind of stand up where you're like either, like what I loved about killing him softly is every joke, there's like this accountability for somebody, whether it's like, you know,

getting high and asking the cops for directions. And he's like, you're on third street. There's all this like different stuff where, you know, when the Sesame Street starts because Chappelle's showing his nephew funny things on television. Right. And he runs into Pepey Lapew

and that's why it's so funny because he goes, now I'm seeing it and I'm like, what kind of fuck the rapist is this guy? And you're like, it's so perfect because there is this like this humanity in it and it isn't like, easy like, this side does this and they're all wrong about this.

It's like this like humanity thing of like, oh shit that I loved turns out I might have been wrong about a lot of it. And I think that's a great lesson for teenagers to learn. Right. When you're like, you know, you don't have to drunk drive accident to have that moment. You just watch stand up comedy.

Yeah. Like, oh, accountability. Maybe I can learn. Yeah. And I think when you're from our generation, I think I'm a couple years older than you. Like, but it's,

it's like, you just kind of think about, God, where was I going with that? I don't even know. I don't even know. We were talking about accountability. It's like you show like the human. We can edit the fuck out of this.

Thank you. I was like, oh. No, no, he's so good. You think about like your, it's a human experience. And like what I appreciate about your stand up is about it's autobiographical. It's not all of it. But it's- which does lend itself to feeling a little gay.

No, it feels a little one-man showy sometimes. I think our, but I don't care about that. But it's a taste thing for me. For sure. It's a taste thing. Absolutely. I completely agree with that. It's not funny.

It's funny no matter what it is. But for me, it's just like, oh, I kind of have an idea of who Dan is as a person. Yeah, I love that about that. You know, it's just like, after you leave stage, it's like, oh, I kind of understand who that dude is. Yeah. I remember one of the first times ever being in a social situation. with Bill Burr and I'm a huge fan and I was watching him and I was just kind of like, oh yeah, yeah, you've informed me that this is how you are.

Yeah. You know, I watched a nice dude. Yeah, but I watched a guy that we both knew back in the day go up to him and he was a little drunk and he, and like Bill, it was about to be the Celtics Lakers finals and he was a Lakers fan and he went up and he was like, my Lakers are going to beat your Celtics and Bill Burr was like, who the fuck are you? And you're like, you had no previous information that was going to be. his reaction?

I was in a situation like that with him one time where I was, it was just, we were just talking about normal stuff. Sure. Kind of like sports stuff in the pocket, but not like, oh, it was just like, oh, I think this guy was who's your favorite, blah, blah, blah. And then another guy came in and just kind of ruined it and made him a little upset. And then, and then when I was leaving the event, I was just like, good to see you, Burr. He said, hey, man, sorry about that.

It's really funny. I really holked out there. Yeah. You really do, like, hanging out with professional fighters, there has to be that thing where you're like, hey, you're getting him too riled up. Like a guy like Bill Burry, like, don't get him. Or like someone comes over with like Pac-you-out and they're like throwing him. He's like, he's going to start throwing punches. He might fuck you up.

He might break your face. He might slip into fight mode and just fucking da-da-da-da-da. He's like, I'd do this for real. Yeah, that's what I mean. Like, you're trying to bust balls with Bill Burr. He might say something that really hurts your feelings. Where do you go, I didn't even think about it like that. Yeah.

That's the way you eat salary. It fucking bugs me. And they're like, oh, God. can't eat celery ever again. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I don't know, man. I think the internet needs to be shut off. I think we need to take the giant switch just for like a year. Touch some grass.

Everyone needs to chill out. If not, I mean, I think the easiest fix is outlawing social media. For kids? Or just in general? Everybody. Everybody? I can see that. I don't think humans are built for it. I think we're too jealous. I think we're too insecure. I think we're too angry. I think we're too fucking bored. that it's like, you know, Janice Pappas used to have this incredible bit about boredom

and like how important it was just to like sit there because then you would think of things. Yeah. And I'm like, man, I think about that bit once every three months where I'm just like more boredom in this world and we'd just be a lot more shit would be working better if people were like, oh yeah, I got if I can do that. Because I do it and I'm just as guilty as anybody. I'll catch myself scrolling where I'm like, what was I doing? What was I thinking about?

I like what's going on. I'll look and I'll be like, oh, I have like 15 minutes until I have to leave. And then there's a part of me, it's like, ooh, I get to scroll. And then I start scrolling and I look up and it's 20 minutes later and I'm mad. I'm like mad about shit. Just waste of time. Yeah. Oh, my God.

I'm reading articles that, by the way, check one source. Most of the time they're not even real. Yeah. That's what's crazy. What, like some random people think about Zendaya and the drama. Or the new Spider-Man trailer. And you're just like, oh, fuck, I'm in here in the comment section, and watching people battle it out.

And it's doing nothing for me. Sometimes it's fun, though. I'm not going to act like I'm above it because my algorithm is... What's popping up now on your algorithm? God, sneakers, video games, celebrity gossip. That's fun. I'm getting a Chinese lady that sings.

Okay. I don't know if you've seen her. No, is it like a voice thing, like where this lady is good or... No, dude, I'm going to tell you right now, this is exactly what I want out of. of the internet. It's a lady in China.

Just got a fucking iPhone. And just singing. It just out here. I'll shut it. She'd make you cry? No. Not cry like, oh,

this is probably like beautiful. No, this is just straight like. Oh, she could just say, okay. It's just a bob, dude. She's just got it.

All right. This lady just, she just knows what she's doing. Let me play her for it. What kind of stuff is she singing? Yeah? All right. I'll run a right back.

You think I won't run a right back on it? Someone's got to chop that up. Oh, yeah. I mean, people do like... Did you ever see that guy that on TikTok would sing where he'd be like, Today I look like the prince of the jungle? You ever see him?

No. You go like 40, 50, 60, 70. Ha ha, yeah. Do you know what I'm talking about? like a friend of the jungle. I will rescue you the princess lost in the forest. Yeah. No, I just thought you were going to show me like some Asian dude or somebody in the Philippines

that sings like on some, like it's singing the shit out of DiAngelo or something. Now that is, what I do have is, in my algorithm, is Filipinos doing creed. Okay. Because there's guys in there, fuck, I wish I could find it. I might have it saved, but there's one where he's just, uh, I mean, they fucking can nail Crete.

I guarantee I have one of these saved. Do you watch that? Is that come up on your feed? Is like, because I want, I mute anything that I'm like, this is really bumming me out. Yeah,

I'm kind of like a, I used to do radio in college. And so I like a good like R&B. Yeah. Like a mellow, like a jam, like a mid-tempo jam. Yeah,

so you're trying to watch like, Like everything that I have right now is just stuff that makes me go like, yeah. So it feeds me stuff. So I just make a playlist on Apple music and just like, if I like it, I'll just dump it in there. And then while I'm driving or something, I'll do a shuffle. Yeah, that's the way to go. Because all my shit I'm looking at that I have saved is either like old nor McDonald clips. Okay.

But I'm trying to find. Also, there's one where there's people trying to learn Mandarin and reverse. We're like, trying to say hippopotamus. Oh, shit. Hipopotam. But then there's like other, it's like the other way where people, we'll probably edit that part out. Yeah.

But I get, I get fed like, oh, these girls, these twins. I've seen them before. Lipsinking videos. It's all, all I want on my feed is just like shit that I'd like. Something's funny. Yeah. It's cool, chill. Recipes.

Yes. I'll send stuff to my girlfriend. We should make this. Yeah. Yeah. And there's people that, like, you'll start. start to follow that there's like a huge wrestling fan. There's a father-daughter duo and she's deaf and he signs.

He does ASL and then she's like really big in wrestling and he took her to WrestleMania. And she's really cool. You like see her. And she like loves it. And that's the kind of shit. I showed Katie and I was like, this is like the heartwarming shit that the internet can provide. Yeah.

And then it's like you can see your algorithm if you're having a bad month trickle into shit. And you're like, why am I? Why is this coming up? What the fuck is going? on. Yeah. Did you watch the Hulk doc yet? I watched the first episode.

So you're on three? Yeah, I just finished three. It's four? Yeah. I'll get there by the end of the weekend. Yeah. I, because I've only watched episode one,

I don't have enough sample sizing to know if it's a puff piece or not. Because I think it's going to be, but also, because it's produced by the WWE, so they don't really want to hit the shit. But the thing that was surprising me in episode one of the whole Kogan documentary was Brett Hart-Tocke fucking shit.

Yeah. Where he was just like, dude, all he could do is a bear hug. All he could do is a bear hug. He wasn't shit. And then he's like, his promo is 10 out of 10. And so he was giving him compliments. So that, again, I only watched episode one. I won't say anything.

That's the rise. So it's hard not for it to look like a puff piece when they're doing the ascension, creating the character, Hulkomania 3, you know, WrestleMania 3, Hulkomania running wild. I'm interested to see what it looks like by episode 3. Yeah. I won't, I won't spoil it. As a black guy, how do you feel about watching that? Well, it's a part of the 80s, and when I was a kid, I did watch, I liked him.

Were you a Hulk a maniac when you were a kid or you're an ultimate warrior kid? I like Hulk. I mean, I remember those, is that the Galube one? No, Galube was WCW, the little rubber ones? Which ones were the big rubber? This is JL, this is that. Okay. They're called like J.

What are they called? I had the wrestling fans at home were like, J. J. B. Yeah, yeah. The galube were the, were the, we're the, this is the, this is. the size of the Hasbro. But they were rubber and they were all WCW. I really know my wrestling figures.

Because there was some... I'm pretty lame. No, I have... I can blame Greg Stone for the... Shout out. Shout out to Greg Stone for getting me addicted in the action figures. Great. It's very fun. Yeah, he's addicted. And then I got Transformers and those are even more. That's what I...

But wrestling for me, it was either X-Men, but it peaked for me with Hasbro, W-WF. Okay. That was like probably my main shit that I... I was like, yeah, that was some shit that if you ran it, bumped into 10-year-old me,

I could talk about Hasbro, WWF figures for like seven hours. Okay. I could be like, there was a series where there was an Owen Hart, was he supposed to come out as high-energy Owen Hart?

Wow. Was he supposed to come out as, uh, what was it like for you? Because I don't know if anybody, from my generation is, if I've ever talked about this on a podcast, really.

What was it like for you going to Toys R Us as a kid? Dopamine. hit. It's the reason I'm an alcoholic. Okay. Yeah, the only, only feeling that comes close to walking into a Toys R Us as an adult is going into a bar to get blackout drunk. Oh. You wouldn't say going into a comedy club or a theater?

It's a rock out. No, man. No, no, fuck that. Toys R Us to me was like, I need that dopamine hit. I need a big one of it. Dude, I mean, Toys R Us. See, I was the, you know, I'm a child of the dopamine hit. divorce and my dad used action figures as currency. Okay. So I had a Christmas where he gave me

a hundred toys are us bucks. Oh shit. And damn there made me shit come. Yeah, my balls dropped. Yeah, my balls dropped that day, dude. It was crazy. He was like, we were, we were visiting my great uncle in like, um, Orange County. Okay. So my mom and my, my grandma and my dad came down from the Bay Area. I met him in Orange County. And my dad was like, it was Christmas. And he's just, just a shitty dad so he didn't buy me Christmas gifts but he had cash and he was like I got you a hundred toys which I don't what I'm giving me a hundred dollars and I get to pick yeah versus what you gave me at seven or eight years old that's not a difference to me that's like this is unbelievable you know what I dropped 40 of the 60 dollars on or 60 of the 100 on

starting lineups I love those dude I bought so many starting lineups I bought a Barry Sanders Lions, Joe Montana. I had a fucking Lawrence Taylor. I had just like unbelievable because to me they were sports action figures. Of course they were. So I was like and the helmet came off and on and they're like and my dad was like don't

open though those will be worth money as he's saying I got the Dion Sanders Falcon one now. I loved it. So like that's the closest I've ever felt is doing drugs. Maybe getting pussy is close to toys or us. Like when you know where you go like oh fuck I'm about to get it to pussy You're like, it feels like Toys R Us.

I feel bad for kids now. I'm going to fuck that draft. Yeah, because you just go to Target or Walmart. It's so sterile. That's such a good point. Yeah. I have this like Pavlovian reaction. If you live in Aurora, Colorado, by the Aurora Mall, there is Highway 225 in Mississippi, right?

Mississippi's the cross street, 225. There used to be, that's where Toys R Us used to be on this corner. And it's now a storage place. And every time I'm driving to my mom's house from the airport on 225, I look hoping it's going to be a Toys R Us again. And it's not. It's still a storage unit place. And you're like, that was the place when I was driving by and I'd see those,

oh, dude, it'd make me want to do my chores. It would make me want to fucking get good grades. Yeah. It would make me, I would be like, I'm trying to go to Toys R Us. My stepdad would take me. Oh, my God. The ceremony of it, because I would be in school. And I would be thinking.

about my going at the end of the day. And as a, I was not as big as I was then, but like as a big kid, you'd go to the store and you'd get the toy and your dad would be like, you want to go to McDonald's? No. Yeah. No, I just want to go play the game or whatever it was. And the ceremony, maybe you can remember this.

You're a gamer when you were a kid, right? Yeah. The ceremony of, you go to this, you go, say it's NBA live. Sure. No, no, no. When we were kids, Bulls versus Lakers, Bulls versus Blazers. It was NBA live, though, too. NBA jam ushered in that.

So I was like 15. I was in high school. I was playing NBA live in 95. Okay. Yeah, I was too. Yeah. Genesis or Nintendo? Genesis.

Yeah, Genesis. Nintendo. Yeah, I went Genesis then N64. Yeah, okay. That was the big jump. Okay. And then PS2. Right.

Yeah. So I never fucked with PlayStation 1. Oh. I mean, I did when I'd go to my friend's house. Yeah. But I never had it. I went Genesis 64, and then I had two jobs in high school. I bought a PS2.

My first on the book's job was what used to be as Six Flags. Okay. It was a great adventure, but that's when I got my PlayStation. My dad worked at Sears. So we got the discount. So, but. See how much more, listen, billionaires that are draining all our money. See what you can make fun?

Commerce can be fun. It doesn't feel lay on your bed and just click and then it shows up your house. That is cool. Yeah. That is cool. but the idea of you sitting in class being like, here's what moves I'm going to make. And I mean, dude, that's how I spent my allowance.

Yeah, me too. My mom was always like, if you want to, I'd call them guys. If you want a guy, you got to save up. Do you remember the game, when you get a game at Toys and Russ, you see, like say it's like the NBA live and it's the ticket. You get the ticket. Yeah. Your mom pays for it.

And then they go in that little cubby. Yeah. And you'd see them open it. To me, that was the first time I thought about robbing the place. Because you see them open the thing and you see all the games. And it's like the opening of the vault where you're like, everybody get the fuck down on the ground. I'm like a little bit.

You don't know who I am. You don't know what I'm capable. Put all the NBA 95s in the fucking bag. You know what it was? And older millennials and Gen Xers will remember this. The sliding glass door, the automatic door, you walk in and you get past the shopping carts and you're like, get all the baby stuff out of the way.

Yeah. But I would hit that action figure aisle and it was like, boom, boom, going through stuff, knocking it over, learning how to hook back on. Yeah. All of it. The entire dance of Toys R Us. And the best part was when you thought they didn't have what you wanted.

And then you went down like, and then you would just find the toy in the back and you're like, you were like afraid someone was, gonna steal it from you. Did you ever hide toys? Yeah, to come back? Yeah. 100%.

100%. Wolverine Series 2 of X-Men. I fucking climbed up and put them up in like a Barbie section and shit. Oh, wow. Because I knew, like my stepdad did this really smart thing. Now, here's my question. Do you ever fuck with KB toys?

Yeah, yeah. KB was, if you were a real action figurehead, what you would do is you'd spend a majority of your money at Toys R Us, but then you'd go to the poor. Mall. Shout out Buckingham Square. You'd go to Buckingham Square and you'd go to the KBs and you'd be like, oh, they got a whole different, because it was different companies. Yeah.

Now you know how capitalism works. You know that like Hasbro and them had to deal with toys. Well, Glob had a deal with KB. So you could buy the WCW guys. I knew that. And I recognized that. I recognized that pattern when I was a young kid. I was like, oh, you can only buy WCW toys at KB.

And I remember I wanted. there was a tag team called Doom. It was Butch Reed and Ron Simmons in WCW. I tapped out around like 9. Oh, God. Because when I was looking at that doc and what was that, WrestleMania, I don't even remember, but I was just like around 94.

Yeah, it was 11. I was into like football, basketball cards. I mean, great year. More into like music. Yeah, last year, 49ers won the Super 9th. Super Bowl 94. Yeah. And I.

You know what that is? That's like you graduating. Because what happened with me is I liked wrestling, but wrestling matured with me perfectly where it became the attitude era because of ECW. They started showing tits and ass and I was pubescent. So I was like, oh, this is a one-stop shop for me. Yeah. I can still like wrestling and it's not gay.

I'm not gay no more. I like Trish Stras. Yeah. I love him. I love Lita, Lita, Lita. Lita. Oh, my God.

I'm not gay no more. That's how it felt with the attitude era here. You're like, dude, I fucking showing, like, Sable. Oh, my God. They're hot. I mean, I just...

It was awesome. I think I was playing, I was playing, maybe stop playing sports. Because when high school came, my dad, because around that time, I switched junior high schools.

I switched schools. And the big thing was like the theater. Really? And like if you were in the drama club, you got to go to Bush Gardens Williamsburg. That's pretty big. And I'd never been. We'd go to Kings a Minion, Wild World Adventure Road,

what used to be. And I secretly, I had like a reverence of the theater or like wanted to do it but was afraid. What got you into it? Bush Gardens, Williamsburg. You should go there and watch plays. No, so what got me in the theater? Well, we used to go.

I went to Catholic school in D.C. from like, well, from like preschool to sixth grade. Okay. And then like we would go to plays, go to Smithsonian museums.

And DC does have that shit better than anybody. Yeah. So like you want to go see a museum? Like we're in Denver and they're like, here's a dinosaur. There's still like art stuff there, right?

But not as where it used to be. The Denver performing arts center is fucking incredible. And my mom was a theater kid. Yeah. So my mom was very big on like, I'm going to take you. to shows starting in sixth grade.

Yeah, and that's around the time, and we would do that stuff, and I like that stuff, and then I remember Bush Gardens Williamsburg, the play was The King and I. Okay. And I was kind of afraid

to audition to play Anna's son, which is the lead woman's son. But I remember the audition, and the audition you had to sing in front of everybody. Can you sing? Yeah, and I used to listen to like, so my dad and I driving around the car, boys and men,

High Harmony. Yeah, I mean, you can sing? Listening to the radio. Oh, man, that was some fun fucking R&B. That was a fun art of here. So I don't know if you remember a lot of harmonizing. Do you remember this album, MTV Unplugged? Yeah.

So Casey and Jojo singing that cover in Stevie Wonder's lately. Absolutely. This is after Joe to see broke up. Yeah. You have Casey and Jojo doing their own thing. Yeah. Fucking mammoth. So.

Yeah. And they did it where like, they did a great unplugged. Unplugged used to fucking rule. You get put on to bands. This is why everything's broken now. I mean, I guess Tiny Desk concert was the one that... That's one of the messages. That's what carried it.

Yeah. But it was so much better because it was like done well and lit well and shot well and fucking... They, like, had performance. Allison Chains, Unplugged is one of the greatest albums of all time. So I studied that song. So lately they covered lately. And so Kate, so it would be Jojo. was start off.

He's, Lately I have. Yeah. And Jojo wore his hat, baseball cap, like straightforward. Sure. And he gets to the part

for K.C. to sing it. Casey singing. Yeah. I turned my hat backwards and started singing like KC. That's all the stuff I knew. You got,

did you get the sitcom moment wherever everyone was? The girls, like, the eighth grade girls that were super hot, they were like, oh my God. You know, the moment

where the live audience goes, whoa, on sitcoms? Yeah. Where it's like, Like you just fucking taking it up a notch? I love that. So that was like, and I was like, I was hooked.

And then the, so I played like the kids. Did you get a girl from that? Not from that. But like, but like, I did get a girl like later on. But like it was like and in eighth grade was a sound of music. Okay. So I don't know if you remember that show. I played Max like the guy that got the Von Traps out of escape.

He got them away. I helped them escape the Germans. the Nazis. So he was fun. I had two songs. And I was like, it was like a handful of black kids in that school. And like the black parents were like, they were looking at me like I was like fucking, I don't know, Sidney Portier or something. And they were impressed.

And my dad said, I think my dad unintentionally like kind of sparked that flame because he was just like, all the parents were like, Chris was really good. the way you were singing and dancing, and I had to do announcement at the end of the show, and we were awarding the director and everybody. And I remember playing baseball like that same year, and then I struck out. I remember striking out,

and one of the parents and one of the black dads was just like, hey man, that's all right, Hollywood. You'll be all right, because he knew he's like, you're not a baseball player. Oh, that's great. It's like you're not. That's a very, like, important thing to have because when you have a skill like that,

you do go like, I am valuable in a way that isn't stereotypically high school. And I fought it. Yeah. Well, so this is what I was going to say is like, good for you for even doing that because I remember,

I got in trouble a lot because I'm just, you know, I'm a loudmouthed on this podcast. Nothing's fucking changed. Still a great show. I just fucking. You're having, I think you're,

I think what your fans or listeners, they might say that, but I think it's because, you're engaged and you're excited. I don't think it's of like any ill intent. No, I don't think it's ill intent. Yeah. I think it's pure obliviousness and stupidity.

But I used to always like get kicked out in school or whatever. And then my guy, like, you know, I almost failed eighth grade and had to repeat. And like I remember they were like meeting with my mom and they were like, he's very funny. He should do theater. Like you should put him where he can like exercise his creative imagination. And I remember being like, yo, that shit's. gay as fuck get out of my face like i was like the kid that was like because i was insecure and i was so insecure that i was like no i'm fighting i'm like clawing tooth and nail yeah for my

friends respect i don't have a dad so i'm just like no no no no no i'm not going to be mommy's little sissy fucking theater here's where i fucked up i would have got so much pussy that's i would have gotten so much pussy in high school That I would have been like, yeah, guys, have fun getting CTE for fucking three and seven record. Yeah. I'm getting fucking. No, I didn't. You would have called me fucking ring pop, dude.

I would have been fucking all over that place. Oh my God, dude. If I was in the theater, I would have been a fucking problem. I could have been in fucking choir. Oh, bo, bo, bo, bo, bo, bo, bo, bo, bo. And I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no, Trish is going to be her boyfriend tonight. A bo, bo, ba, and instead I'm like, playing out. linebacker just getting ran over every fucking

practice. Did you play against anybody that became famous? A couple guys that went to the NFL. I mean, the most famous person that I played with was Mike McDaniel. He was just my friend. He was just an undersized wide receiver. Who had hands and could run routes like a motherfucker. So don't come at him. And it's not the guy from the internet that everyone thinks. Where they're like, McDaniel looks clean and it's that white guy in the rain running routes. I don't know if that comes across your feed. Where they're like no pads.

They're just like running routes. in the rain and they're like, yo, dolphins, Mike McDaniel running routes. And you're like, that's not him. But you ran clean-ass routes. Well, I know about that. Like, I, you wouldn't appreciate this. Julian Peterson is my cousin. Really?

His mom and my mom grew up, like grew up together. Julian Peterson is one of the, like, I mean, Julian Peterson is the fucking man. He's number 98 on the 49ers. He taught me how to play techno bowl. That's crazy. Very first techno ball. Him going to the Seahawks was one of my biggest heartbreaks. Yeah.

Because Julian Peterson was a 49er when they sucked. Where do you go? Michigan State. Michigan State. He was like Juco. And when he- Shut out. Did I still got that shit under that layer of resin? I know where the 49ers all went.

That's my autism. I have 49ers autism, dude. No, I get it. Julian Peterson's the fucking man. He's a monster. He was a badass. He was that, you know what he was? He was that like.

The hoop too. Yeah. Played basketball at Michigan State. But he, um, he was that archetype of, of long and fast being an edge setter, which like redefined the NFL. It was Javon Curse was the first one out of Florida, and then he did it with the Titans.

But then you watched Julian Peterson come out of Michigan State and ended up on the 49ers. When we had those shadowed numbers and those dark gold pants, ah, dude, that 49ers fit was bring those back. But I love that, dude. Yeah. So he was your, so did you play football? I did as a kid, but like I kind of got burnt out.

my dad wanted it more than I did. It'll burn out any kid. And I think, and I think my dad, to his credit, you know, when you're a kid, you think your parents are superheroes. And then when you get older, you're just like, oh, that was just a guy. Well, that's, yeah, that's what life is.

You know, it's funny is that's how the Hogan doc feels. Yeah. And you go, oh, I remember that moment of thinking you're a superhero. And now I'm watching you and I'm like, oh, you're like an old guy with a... Yeah. But then when you realize

oh, because he was just a guy, he was... My dad was pretty fucking remarkable. Great. So I missed him every day. Yeah. But he would say... It's kind of like a sitcom dad

in a lot of ways. He said, yeah, maybe I did push you a little bit too hard. Yeah, because he was like, I kind of wanted it. Well, you were a bigger dude. Yeah. You have a dad there that wants you to play football.

Because they're two big things. So I was... a big kid and I was playing I was in his fifth or sixth grade playing against eighth graders on my team and it was one kid that would always like give me trouble and we got into a fight and practice and they tried to break it up

and my dad was like no no that's good let him go let him get that dog looked his ass that's great you know but it was just but he my dad was like no no no yeah I mean I think it is you know it's funny is like I was the inverse of your dad I didn't have a dad and I wanted it

more than he did yeah so I'd like dad I'm still playing football he's like all right how do you have my number and you're like I don't know I'm just like trying real hard out here I wear number 42 I'm like he's like okay I'm gonna go get drunk but to your to your point about like being insecure about the theater stuff sure would have been great at it I think I would have had a very good fucking time and I enjoy theater and it's like I and then I like to think I'd like to think I'd have I would be like a marginal college athlete maybe did it a couple years in pro have a dealership or something oh dude like a kid that hates me dealership you got to have a

conference title. But, but to your point, we were, we're of the age where, yeah, that was kind, people did consider that gay. And then like maybe around 2003, when I was in grad school, I was in Chicago. Yeah. I was in grad school and I was teaching during the summer at a theater camp. Around that time, high school, high school musical was out. Oh, I bet that should blew it up.

So it was just like everybody, it was okay. And now they're doing national theater competitions where gay, straight, everybody's doing it. Yeah, I mean, I do think it is one of those things where you're kind of so stupid as a kid that you just follow what the brightest light is. Yeah. And I mean, I love football. I still love football a lot, but I knew I wasn't good second I played freshman football. Second I played freshman football, I was like, damn, but the thing that I loved about it was the camaraderie. Yeah. And I can hit people really hard. So that was really fun. I was getting really, I was getting hit really hard at home. So it was nice to hit people really hard on the football field.

Yeah. Because, you know, at least you can give it back a little. But, I mean, I was kidding. I wasn't getting hit. I was getting yelled at. I was getting verbally hit. I got hit, but I didn't get hit all the time.

But football to me was just something where it was like, I, that's where I knew I was funny. Yeah. Because I could make all those guys laugh. I was making, like, seniors laugh when I was a sophomore. And you're like, oh, shit. You're like, damn. All right.

Do you remember a bit? Like, just like anything you said that you were like, fuck, I kind of. I remember I used to like. very random but I used to when I would lace my cleats I would like make fun of techno and I'd be like lacing up my cleats

and I'd be like or putting my pads in my pants and I'd be like I want to see some boobies boobies I want to see some boobies I want to see some boobies boobie and like they'd be like you know what the fuck but then they would like start singing it along and we'd be like just like joking around and I'm like

boobo boobo oh I want to see so boobies and they like I was silly Yeah, yeah. And they thought it was like, it was pure silliness. Sure. So you just have like a silly goose outbreak. Yeah. You know what I mean?

But then like I would blow cover two. And someone would pick up a-up. Soder! Yeah, someone would pick up a 15-yard gain on a, on a fucking, on a slant. Because I made you laugh in the locker room. I made my best friend laugh who he was like a three-year letter. He was like her captain, starting left guard. Shout out Carrape.

He still one of my best friends. he was really good at football. He was like, he was like the kind of kid that freshman year you show up and you go, we're not the same age. Yeah.

He was like doing bench press with like 225 pounds when we were like 14 and I was like, I was struggling to hit the bar with like two tens on it. I was like, yeah. They're built different.

Yeah. Me and McDaniel were so small working out and Garrett Pace racking it. Dude, I remember he had a fucking 25 and a 35 on and he's just fucking banging out of set and I'm like, there's zero chance we're both 14.

Like you're a little fucking man. But he ended up becoming one of my best friends in our junior year. We were doing first team defense, first team offense, first team offense scrimmage like at the end of practice. And I was playing outside linebacker. And he was like, he was like, gonna pull.

So he was like, I'm gonna come get you, Soter. I'm coming to get you. And I put, I had a cowboy collar. And I like, I like bumped it up with my helmet.

And I went, he sounded like a big chit you train. from Waterboy and he lost it. I just remember him losing it, like, him holding his three-point stance being like, like, burning down to the ground and I was like, you sound like a big choo-choo-choo-chard. Because I was standing like Bobby Boucher.

And it was just like, by the way, I think they probably got seven yards on the sweep that play to my side. I didn't fucking check for a crack block. But it was... God damn it, soda! That's all I heard. The moment that makes him laugh the hardest,

I think this is, And Shane fucking loves this moment Was I was on kickoff team I didn't I played I was a special teamer and Wedge Buster and I I like fucked up and we In our second week like let a kickoff

Return for a touchdown so he So our coach coach Anderson Was like kicking people off the kickoff team And he kicked off most people And I thought I survived and then he gets to the end of the line And he goes Sauter you're off And I go

It's Soder I walked off the girl. I walked down to kickoff to. Dude, to this day, two of my best friends, Chad and Danny, Chad and Danny, like that is one of the funniest moments that are high school football career.

Get my name right. Yeah, I was like, but I was so defeated. Yeah. I went, It's soda. It's like, oh shit.

So I knew I was never going to be shit playing football, but I just loved all of it. I just loved playing it. I loved, like, even though I sucked, I was like, dude, let's do hitting drills. Let's play fucking 7V7. Yeah.

And I also, at that time, like, I think when I could have gotten good at it, I got real into drugs. That's not good. And so that's like the other way you go, where you go, you know what's cooler than playing Will linebacker? Getting stone. But I was, because I had started smoking cigarettes when I was 12 and I would quit for football every year. Okay. I don't know why, but I was. I would.

See, that stuff was a deterrent for me because my dad used to drink. He stopped and he stopped smoking. Oh, that's big. And then I had like, because I remember I was like, Dad, why did you, why did you stop drinking? And he was like, well, I was supposed to build a swing set for you and I overslept because I drank too much. And I was like, I probably. Yeah, your dad really did. Your dad really did take shit account.

Like, damn, I'm like, I'm like, I'm not even, I'm not even jealous you had a dad. I'm more jealous that he took account. I'm like very jealous that he was like you know what that was my bad he could whoa whoa you're telling me he didn't gaslight you for 14 years of your life and then he fucking dies and you're left with it's like that louis bit where he's like you get one good parent yeah he's like one parent my mom I love my mom sure because I love her so much I'm alive because of my mom I was with her I was with her this this week like I drove down to Maryland to take her to the doctor's appointment you're a good son

she complains a lot she's then I took her to McDonald's got her fish sandwich and an ice cream cone she loved it dude i'll tell you right now that fish if you get a you get a filet yeah i love a dude i'll i can't do it around with katie because she is too good of a sense of smell but i fuck a double fillet up not a double i'll do a single with third sauce but i'll do it as the second sandwich next to a big mac yeah yeah yeah yeah i might have to get mcdon's but it's like that parent that like pushes you sure and he's like you what my dad used to say he was like you know if you played football girls will like you and And I was like, well, there's girls in the drama club.

I mean, you're right. And he was like, oh, okay, you're not gay. All right. All right. Yeah. Because it's still from born in 1941. Oh, dude, they were all, by the way, the boomers. Yeah.

They all did that check. Yeah. They all did the gay check. I don't care. We want to care how fucking progressive your parents are now. They didn't vote for Trump. I don't give a fuck. In the 90s, they were doing a gay check on their kids.

You still have to say, you can't say that. Yeah. Yeah. Is that teacher of yours is a, you can't. say that. Yeah. I remember my mom was like I was pretty young. She just caught me looking at a lady's

tits and she was like, yeah, you're fine. She's like, this kid, I don't know. Yeah. Yeah. There is like a thing of, man, I'm going to think about that Toys R Us thing for a while. I feel bad that kids don't have that. It's so, it's just not, I mean, it's so sterile, it's so cold. Like, even

sometimes, like, looking into a Walmart and just, like, it's just, eh. Yeah. You order them online. Like Greg was my pusher because like he, I was trying to. Greg, by the way, he's been on the road with me. And he's been recently being like, I have to reform. I have two children.

But he's getting them into transformers. Tell him I said hello. I will. Because I, because I, because he's done my show a couple of times. And like, he, because I was like, oh, they would be cool to get a Black Panther action figure. Sure. When the Civil War came out. Sure.

And I could not find one. And then I remember one time getting a text from him at like six in the morning. and he was like, it's right here on this link from the Hasbro site. And I got it. And I was like, that was your plug. Yeah.

And then ever since then it's been like, did that give you a little Toys R Us nostalgia? A little bit like getting it. Because that's the high now when they drop. It's just like sneakers or anything. Yeah. It's just like that is how buying is where it's like, it's unaffordable.

And then you can't afford it. Then it is. And you're like, drug. Yeah. I love the drug. Well, that's what's like what's awesome.

I think about, um, kind of to echo, what we were talking about, about how I was so insecure with, like the theater stuff. Yeah. When I moved to New York and started doing stand-up,

that was when I noticed that a lot of guys loved wrestling, played with action figures late in their life, had a lot of similarities where I was like, oh, so I can just be that. And they're like, yeah. And that's why my bookcase, because there's people that come in here and they're like,

what is this your bookcase or whatever? And you go, it's probably a pretty accurate portrayal. And also a lot of this is from fans. So it's, to me, like, the coolest shit in the world. You told me I would have had a job. where the makers of these new like Hasbro style toys

I did a voiceover thing for them and they sent me a box I told Katie they sent me a box of action figures and I was like I gotta find kids to give them to but it was like 10 year old me was blown away

like well you've made it yeah I'm not fucking front page of the Hollywood reporter who gives a fuck I'm getting a box of fucking Legion of Doom and Steiner brothers like go check out Matt Classics

this isn't even a plug but they do like nerd closet. There's like a bunch of guys that make cool shit. Yeah. I like all that stuff. I mean,

I, I'm a big fan of the Last of Us. I think that the games were incredible. Can I tell you something that's going to make you very angry at me? Let's see. I played Last of Us part one. Amazing. It was during the pandemic,

right before the pandemic. Stopped playing it for a little bit during the pandemic. Completely forgot where I was in the game. I was swimming, looking for something. Completely forgot the control. Sure. Restarted it, played it, loved it.

Yeah. Part two came out, got halfway, got to part two of part two, like the middle when you're in Seattle. Yes. Stopped playing, forgot the controls. I'm going to have to run it back. I haven't finished it. Well, didn't Katie finish it?

Katie got it way before me. She's more of a gamer than you or no. Depends on which game. She'll go hard on a game and then get me to do it. She got me into God of War. She got me into Last of Us. I got her into Ghost of Sushima. I just finished that.

It's fantastic. Did you play the second one? I want it. I want to get it. It's, no. While you're riding the high of the first one, play the second one.

Don't put too much time in between them. It's a very, a little bit of a letdown. Ghost of Yote was. Because she's got more shit. Like she's got a gun. You got cooler stuff. You got a wolf.

You got cooler weapons. Yeah. You start with all your shit. I found Ghost of Shushima to be a, a much better game. Okay. Front to back. Like greater story, greater highlight.

I liked Ghost of Yote. Yeah. Felt too much like, um, too much of like a quick. Have you ever played the game, Seafood? That's hard. Yeah. Oh, dude, that's my shit. You beat it?

You want, beat it. Brother, I just fucking stay in it. Damn. I fucking, I've beat it on, on my system. I've beat it on my steam deck. I've unlocked most of the arenas. We got to talk about the steam deck. It's, it's,

Fantastic. Okay. If you travel and you play video games, owning a steam deck is necessary. He's got one. Okay. They are just like, you can get them modded. My mod crashed. So my buddy Joe, who, uh, who works at a comedy club, I won't say which one.

But he helps me mod my, my steam deck and put on like Sega. I put on all Sega, Super Nintendo, Nintendo, N64, PlayStation 1, and then a bunch of PlayStation 2 games. I played like NBA Street volume 2. Oh, shit. Def Jam, Vendetta, Fight for New York, which I'm probably going to replay this weekend. But there is, like, games where you can just go back and be like, oh, I remember I loved that game.

And the emulator usually works pretty great. Steam deck is the shit. But Seafood is one of the best beat-em-up games of all times. That stuff is tempting. I mean. It's like, I think they're, like, you can find them refurbished for, like, $300. had a Nintendo Switch.

Great. And I had Metroid Dred. Great. It was amazing. But now it's like you can't use it anymore. Is it whack? Because like now the two is out and nothing, nothing works. That's what I mean.

It's all I grab Steam Deck. What's great about it is because I've never been a PC gamer. Neither have I. Real gamers. Yeah. And everyone knows that. I'm a little console bitch. I am too.

I mean, it's nothing wrong with that. This is the closest you'll get to being a PC gamer. Okay. Because it's got the tech of. PC games so they can't really fuck with you on a lot of shit. So you can like the community's really big

they'll like tell you how to download stuff. It is, I mean dude I played Spider-Man. The recent ones? Yeah. One and two on my team. What did you think of two? One of the best video games of all time. Why does everybody hate that shit? They're fucking smoking. I thought it was fun. They're smoking rocks a dickhead

because it's great. Wolverine's coming out. This is September. Yeah. Oh, September. Insomniac did or not insomniac. Whoever did. It was insomnia. Yeah, they did it. Same studio. Oh.

I want the bond. See, I'm back. I'm back long. I'm back. Yeah, that's what all the things I like. Earned the double O, you like earn the number in this one? Yeah,

I only do third person. You're a third person guy? I'm only a third person guy. I can't do the, like that new game that's supposed to be hot with them, that's like the Mickey Mouse animation type shit. It's a shooter.

Everybody's raving about it. I haven't even seen that. It's like all the, I forget the name of it, but people are going crazy over it. Yeah. I was like, the John Wick is coming out.

and that's third person. That looks great. Yeah, I'm a third person. By the way, if John Wick is even half of a good video game, third person,

people keep asking me if I'm back. I'm thinking them back. I'm fucking. For me, it's like speaking to KB Toys, like the last memory of KB Toys was 96,

my dad bringing Tomb Raider home to me, the very first one. Yeah, and PlayStation 1, do. PlayStation 1. Boxy ass horn. Foxy ass Laure Croft

and then that big ass dinosaur coming. It was like the biggest team we had in the house was like a 32 inch at the time and I was like oh shit it was amazing. Are they completely gone? Last time I remember and I'll tell you what the only time of my life I've ever gotten

political was when I found out that Mitt Romney owned the company. Idos. That was a prominent American mall based toy retailer out of business February 2000. Oh, okay. I thought you were talking about the company that...

Yeah, they liquidated them, and I think it was like something, but they had, dude. Yeah, that game... I mean, KB Toys was... It was a shit. That brought me, Tomb Raider, that reboot in 2013 brought me back to gaming.

Yeah, it's interesting what games can bring you back in after a while. Because before it was just sports, right? Like, I was just a sports guy. That was me up until college. I played, I mean, I would play like, or perfect dark on 64. Mm-hmm.

Or like Metal Gear Solid. Yeah. PlayStation 2 got me a little bit, but then PS4 and PS5 have just completely gone into full gaming. Yeah. It's like adult, very adult gaming. Because that college football game... I still play it.

I'd like to. You're going to leave here, and I'm not joking when I say I'm going to play UMass versus University of Washington in the playoffs. I've ran a 30-year dynasty. How good are you? What level? All-American? Really?

Yeah, I don't play on Heisman. I suck. But I do slider. on all-American. So I up the AI on all-American. I suck on varsity. I played one season with Colorado last year. I had bought 26 for cheap.

Oh, yeah? I was trying to... 25, because 26 is the newest one. I bought that for cheap, and it was kicking my ass. Oh, I love it. I don't know. I'm finishing a 30-year dynasty. Jesus Christ.

I think I have like 22 titles. Wow. Started at East Carolina, moved to Minnesota, moved to Colorado. moved to Syracuse and then to UMass Amherst. Because Katie, I was like Katie, Katie was in that room. I was like, how shitty is UMass? And she goes, they suck.

And I went, I'm taking the head coaching job. And she's like, let's fucking go. We're fucking UMass Minute Man. I can't even sell out a game and I'm a national champion there. That's good to have a partner that's like that. Yeah. I love my girlfriend, but we're like nine, 10 months in as of this record.

Okay. So it's new. So, yeah, so it's new, but, like, I downloaded that, um, cosmic, Marvel Cosmic. Oh, yeah. That was fun. Sure. The new He-Man I want when that comes out. Oh, there's a video he?

It's a beat-em-up coming out next week, I think, at 27th or something like that. Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do it. For what system? For all, like, you know, like, PlayStation, you could download it, you know. Yo! Matches of the Universe or something. April 28th. Okay, yeah.

For PC. Switch PlayStation Xbox. You. Yeah. What the fuck, dude? So I want to play that. I'm gonna up. And Masters and Evers is coming out.

Yeah. I think that's why. Yeah, it does look really good. Dude, what a nostalgia trip. I'm gonna go open to Poys R Us. Chris Lambert's special. Killing in obscurity is on YouTube right now. The link is down below.

Click it. He's fucking hilarious. I've known him forever. Watch is special and enjoy it. Thanks for having me, man. Absolutely, man. Always a pleasure. And, man, let's go open that, let's go open that.

We should, man. It's going to business. Yeah, let's do it. When the internet shuts down, let's open it towards. Sounds good. Sounds like a plan.